Daily Archives: March 9, 2017

The Department of Housing and Urban Development’s lack of oversight into borrower-financed down payment assistance programs for Federal Housing Administration-insured loans puts borrowers and the FHA’s flagship insurance fund at “unnecessary risk,” HUD’s watchdog said in a new report.

According to the report from the Office of Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, HUD “failed to adequately oversee” billions of dollars in loans that may have “questionable down payment assistance,” thereby putting the FHA’s Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund at risk because of borrowers with higher than market interest rates.

Steven Mnuchin’s picks for the top ranks of the U.S. Treasury are stalled due to resistance from White House aides, including one recruit whose Twitter account was scrutinized for potential criticism of Donald Trump, according to people familiar with the matter.

Bogged down are Mnuchin’s choices for his senior management team — deputy secretary, undersecretaries for domestic finance and international affairs, general counsel and several other posts, these people said. Mnuchin has complained privately to friends that President Trump’s advisers are hindering him as he tries to get the Treasury up and running.

More than a dozen people with knowledge of the debate spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the confidential deliberations.

In recent weeks, President Trump has repeatedly mentioned promised investments and jobs from Sprint and its parent company Softbank. Now the wireless provider is reportedly hoping to eventually turn that goodwill — and theTrump administration’s light-touch approach to regulation — into a mega merger, possibly with T-Mobile, Comcast, or others.

New wireless industry mergers are currently on hold until the government-sponsored wireless spectrum auction ends later this spring, but the New York Times reports that Tokyo-based SoftBank has met with members of the White House economics team, talking up the need for consolidation.

SoftBank executives and members of President Trump’s economic team recently addressed the future of mergers broadly. The Times, citing sources briefed on the matter, reports that the presentations claimed that a lack of advanced digital investments has put the U.S. economy at risk. This risk could be mitigated if telecommunications and wireless companies merged.

Sources tell the Times there are several options for the company, including linking up with competitor T-Mobile, or hopping into the fray with Comcast.